Mental Blocks

Every so often, I get my men­tal blocks out and play with them. This is the block that keeps me from remem­ber­ing names. Here is the block that keeps me from slow­ing down. Over here is the block that keeps me from remem­ber­ing birth­days and other impor­tant dates (it is quite large). This weird block is labeled “self-defeat” and is respon­si­ble for five unfin­ished degrees, sev­eral pre­ma­ture moves, and a host of less-than-successful per­sonal relationships.

When stacked together they can look like a wall of impos­si­bil­i­ties. It is good to pull them apart and real­ize how weak they are stand­ing alone. Over the years, some of the blocks have got­ten smaller, but some of them have got­ten larger. I can­not tell you how many times I have had to step over these things in my mind. Going around them takes a bit of effort. Admit­ting to them is an impor­tant part of know­ing yourself.

Some­times, when I appear deep in thought, I am merely rear­rang­ing my men­tal blocks. I have found that no mat­ter how I stack them they still func­tion the same way. I apol­o­gize for them and some­times chip away at them. One of the fas­ci­nat­ing things about being human is the abil­ity to actu­ally see and work with our men­tal blocks.

I am not sure if I want to toss them. I have got­ten so used to them that they seem to be part of my per­son­al­ity. Then again, that is kind of like the excuse of keep­ing some cum­ber­some item around the house that I might use some­day. That day never comes. The item is just a bur­den — a sort of sym­bolic clod in the house of the soul.

Knock­ing down your men­tal blocks is a good way of look­ing at the real you behind them. You are not merely a list of your lim­i­ta­tions. Blocks are just strat­egy obsta­cles in the game of life. There is no rea­son to obsess on them. Toss them around a bit and notice that you begin to smile. Pesky inhi­bi­tions are merely annoy­ances in the mix of life…and part of the edu­ca­tion of the soul.